Your concert with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra is called Baroque Oboe, how important a role did the instrument play in baroque music?

Oboe is very prominent in Baroque music! We have lots of divine things to play, by Bach, Telemann, Vivaldi, Handel and Albinoni to name just a few.

Diana DohertyDiana Doherty. Photo © Christie Brewster

How would you describe your approach to early music performance practice?

I like to be as informed as I can, be inspired by specialist performers like Marcel Ponseele and Alfredo Bernardini, and be familiar with the whole score to gain a strong sense of the baseline and harmonic structure. At the same time, I try to hold onto the essence and simplicity of the message and not to get intellectual at the expense of that. So I guess you could say the aim is to be respectful and considered but still a little bit personal.

What are the pleasures and the challenges of the music you’re performing with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra?

Of the many pleasures I would say the combination of oboe and strings is one that I really love to be immersed in. A long, long time ago I started...